The History and Uses of Terracotta in Construction Projects
Construction Development
The History and Uses of Terracotta
The word terracotta originates quite literally from the Italian translation “baked earth” and its use across the globe has a prominent place in history (and continues to be vastly used today).
Terracotta is an environmentally friendly material as it is derived from natural clay deposits. Its production involves less energy compared to some other building materials, contributing to its sustainability.
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One of its earliest reference points was in prehistoric art, with some of the oldest pottery of time being found as far back as 24,000 BC. Interestingly, these early pieces were found to be Palaeolithic terracotta figurines, rather than cooking vessels, as you might expect, demonstrating how widely terracotta has been used in the art.
Developing novel approaches to promoting health, safety, and welfare, contemporary interiors are increasingly inspired by biophilic design as a holistic approach to provide a state-of-the-art design.
Terracotta
Properties
Terracotta is one of the most distinct types of clay you’ll find, given its rich, rust red/orange coloring. The reason for this distinct color is that the iron content in terracotta’s clay body reacts with oxygen and gives it a hue that ranges through reds, oranges, yellows, and even pinks.
The properties of terracotta are that it’s a porous clay to work with, and it can also be used glazed and unglazed, which adds to its appeal. One coat of glaze is needed to make it waterproof. When terracotta is glazed, bright colors are often favored because they work brilliantly with terracotta’s low-firing temperature (approximately 1100 C/2012 F to 1200 C/2192 F to create a striking contrast with its orange body). These low firing temperatures also mean lower energy costs.
In some cases, terracotta has been fired as low as 600 degrees Celsius. Majolica ware can be created with terracotta by bisque-firing the terracotta pieces and painting them with an opaque white glaze and firing them again. Sometimes, nothing more than a clear glaze needs to be used on terracotta to enhance its natural fired color and give it a great shine.
Primitive pieces of terracotta were just left to harden and bake in the hot sun, while later pieces (before kilns) were fired in the ashes of open fires. Another great property that terracotta has is that it can withstand varied temperature changes with a lower chance of cracking, making it incredibly functional.
Terracotta
Where to Find It
One of the biggest reasons that terracotta is so prevalent in history across so many genres is that it can be found anywhere and is known as being the most commonly found clay across every continent. Terracotta is usually not a pure clay and is found mixed with other minerals full of flux and plenty of iron oxide.
What would you do with a lump of terracotta clay? Would you build a new flower pot or perhaps a new wall for your property?
There’s no project too big or small for terracotta! Contact us to discuss with our team your next project.
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